1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a magnetic recording/reproduction apparatus.
2. Description of the Related Art
A conventional magnetic recording/reproduction apparatus disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 61-203443 will be described with reference to FIGS. 44 and 45.
FIG. 44 illustrates the conventional magnetic recording/reproduction apparatus in an eject position where a magnetic tape cassette can be mounted on a moving chassis 301, and FIG. 45 illustrates the magnetic recording/reproduction apparatus in a loaded position where a magnetic tape is wound around a rotary head drum, and the apparatus is ready to perform a magnetic recording/reproduction operation.
Referring to FIG. 44, the magnetic recording/reproduction apparatus includes a fixed chassis 317, the moving chassis 301, a rotary head drum 318 having a rotary head, a magnetic tape 373, a supply reel base 303a, a take-up reel base 303b, a tape cassette 337, and tape loading members 327a and 327b each having a rotation guide 329 and an inclined guide 330. As the tape loading members 327a and 327b move along guide rails 309a and 309b from the position shown in FIG. 44 to the position shown in FIG. 45, and the moving chassis 301 moves along the direction indicated by an arrow C in FIG. 45, the magnetic tape 373 is pulled out from the tape cassette 377 and wound around the rotary head drum 318, thereby establishing the loaded position shown in FIG. 45 where the magnetic recording/reproduction apparatus is ready to perform a magnetic recording/reproduction operation.
The tape feed posts illustrated in FIGS. 44 and 45 are configured as follows. The inclination adjustment mechanism is not shown in FIGS. 44 and 45.
The inclined guide 330 and the rotation guide 329 are provided on a movable member 328. A tension detection pin 351 is provided on a rotatable arm 352 which is axially supported about a shaft provided on a moving chassis 301. A tape drawing pin 354 is provided on a rotatable arm 357 which is provided on the fixed chassis 317.
Thus, the magnetic tape 373 is guided by the group of tape feeding posts comprising a number of elements, and is wound around the rotary head drum for recording/reproducing data to/from the tape.
A tension detection pin 351 is provided on a moving member (e.g., the moving chassis 301), and it is difficult to accurately keep the position and the inclination thereof with respect to the rotary head drum.
In the magnetic recording/reproduction apparatus, it is very important to accurately keep the position and the inclination of each tape feed post with respect to the rotary head drum in order not to damage the magnetic tape being fed. Particularly high accuracy is required for maintaining the position and the inclination of the tape feed posts for a thin magnetic tape suitable for use in long-time, digitized applications.
Therefore, each element of the structure illustrated in FIGS. 44 and 45 requires a high degree of accuracy in its dimensions and inclination. In order to realize such high accuracy, it is necessary to take measures such as increasing the size of the element in order for the element to accommodate a greater portion of the associated shaft, to increase the robustness of the element, and/or to set a more stringent dimensional tolerance for the element. However, these may hinder downsizing and simplification of the mechanism.